Online buying and selling is bigger than ever, making it easier for consumers to find and buy the products they want and easier for the sellers to reach those customers. Unfortunately there is a down side, online shoppers can be targeted by scammers.
If it's too good to be true, it probably is.
Finding amazing deals can sometimes make us think impulsively and rush to add to our basket. Before making any purchases you need to take a moment and think twice. Although it is possible to find amazing deals online, do some research and see how significantly lower it is than anywhere else to understand its market value. If their prices are extremely low then it's probably best to avoid that website.
Check reviews
It is important to have a look to see what other shoppers have said about the company. For sites like Amazon and Ebay you can check the product pages for individual reviews. If you can't find any information about them then it's probably a sign to avoid them. Trust pilot is a good place to look for reviews, they will show everything a customer has said whether it's good or bad. Although it is important to look at company/ product reviews, scammers may have gone that extra mile and forged some glowing reviews to make themselves look more trustworthy so do not rely on this alone.
Contact information
Have a look to see whether their contact information is on display. Legit companies will not try to hide this and they will usually show a phone number, email address, social media tags and a headquarters address. If you are really not sure, you can reach out to the company before you buy. If you have tried to get in contact using a variety of ways and no answer then that is a bad sign.
Online presence
With advances in technology, it is easier to make your website look good and less obviously a scam. When looking at the website, look for spelling mistakes, low quality pictures and flimsy content. If the website starts with “https” instead of “http” it means it is secure as they are using an TLS/SSL certificate which can only be given if the company has been through a SSL validation process. Also look at the lock at the beginning of the URL to see whether it has a red line through it or says not secure next to it which means you should avoid this website. Look to see if the company has any social media accounts, this can help you determine their legitimacy further.. You may find more information or images from here. Lack of followers, little or no content and generally an overall bad page that could be a red flag.
Look for multiple payment options
Trustworthy companies should offer a variety of ways to make a payment, they should support many different debt and credit cards as well as offer digital methods like Google Pay, MasterPass and VisaCheckout. Sites that only offer paypal are usually ones to avoid.
What should you do if you have been scammed?
Contact your bank and explain the situation. They can sometimes reverse the payment, especially if it has been made by a credit card.
Contact the police and report the crime. You should also report it to Trading Standards and Action Fraud.
Spread the word about the scammers. Leave negative reviews and your social media accounts to spread awareness and ask people to share.
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